Menidi

Hundreds of firefighters struggled overnight to contain a wildfire on the outskirts of Athens, forcing more evacuations as authorities warned the risk of new blazes was high across the country on Wednesday.

Twenty people have been killed since fires erupted in northern Greece on Saturday and quickly spread, fanned by gale force winds in the second major outbreak of the summer.

Greek health experts are concerned about the increase in the number in new Covid-19 infections in the past 48 hours, particularly in Attica, saying that this development may halt any plans to further open the economy.

In Attica alone on Wednesday, 409 new cases were detected, of which 76 were in the northern suburbs, 104 in the center of Athens and 49 in Eastern Attica.

A week after an 11-year old boy was fatally shot by a stray bullet during an open-air school party in Menidi, northwestern Athens, Public Order Minister Nikos Toskas said the issues in the area that led to the tragedy will take time to resolve.